7:59 am, October 14, 2022
An ‘unscrupulous’ car dealer in the north east of England has been fined for selling a car he knew not to be safe, just hours after it failed an MOT.
Armin Hajizadeh, of Gateshead’s Classic Motor Show dealership, was found guilty of seven offences in relation to the sale of a Hyundai Coupe in Novermber of last year.
The car was seen advertised for £1,500 on Auto Trader, with Hajizadeh describing it as having a 12-month MOT.
However, when the consumer contacted him, she was told the car had not yet passed an MOT and she could instead buy it for just £1,200 if she arranged the test herself.
She was also promised that she could have her money back if the car failed, but this turned out to be a lie from Hajizadeh.
What he was not admitting was that the Korean motor had actually failed an MOT that same morning, and was therefore unroadworthy.
When the car failed a further MOT, paid for by the consumer, Hajizadeh refused to refund her, stating instead that he sold the car for ‘spares or repair’, which he had written on his invoice.
The consumer therefore approached Gateshead Council’s Trading Standards, which carried out a thorough investigation into the complaint.
The teamed discovered that Hadjizadeh had purchased the car at auction for just £284 and called in experts from the DVSA to inspect it.
They found that the MOT failures were due to heavily corroded suspension, an inoperative parking brake, and a major leak of exhaust gasses due to a fractured exhaust pipe.
As a result of the findings, Hajizadeh was dragged up before a court, where he was found guilty under the Road Traffic Act of selling a car in an unroadworthy condition.
He was also found guilty under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations for providing misleading information by stating the car had a valid MOT in an advert and for not advising the consumer the car had failed an MOT.
There were also charges for telling her she could have a refund if the car failed an MOT, for stating that the car was sold for salvage or repair when this was not the case, and for obstructing a Trading Standards Officer by not producing documents when requested.
Finally, he was also convicted of an offence under the Companies Act for not having his name and business details on the invoice given to the consumer.
Hadjizadeh was slapped with a £500 fine for the offences and ordered to pay costs of £1,074 as well as a £50 victim surcharge.
He will also have to fully reimburse the conned customer and cover any costs incurred during the time she had possession of the vehicle.
Councillor Linda Green, cabinet member for communities and volunteering at Gateshead Council said: ‘We are absolutely delighted with the outcome of this prosecution.
‘The unscrupulous sale of unsafe vehicles not only presents a risk to life to those in the car, but also to anyone who may find themselves in its path should it suffer a catastrophic failure in movement.
‘The requirement for an MOT means cars such as the one sold by Mr Hadjizadah should not be driving on our roads, and the fact it was sold deceitfully to an unsuspecting consumer, followed by a pack of lies to avoid having to provide a refund, is appalling.
‘The results of this prosecution should serve as a warning to any other traders out there who think they can deal in fraudulent goods or services.’
Main image: Gateshead Council
